Just what is a wireless handset? It's a question I ask a lot these days.

I know what silicon suppliers want handsets to be: electronic Swiss army knives that play movies, music and games; snap photos; and manage the user's calendar and e-mail.

And, oh, take and make phone calls too.

Don't worry. I'm not going to get on my soapbox, ranting that these are phones. (For those of you scoring at home, I last did that on Sept. 8, 2003; www.eet.com/semi/c/si2go/OEG20030908S0040).

Certainly, there's a golden opportunity to fly off the handle, now that suppliers are introducing 3-D display controllers for better gaming on wireless handsets. However, I will restrain myself.

That said, there's no denying that phones are what these mobile devices really are. Adding other features amounts to a push from the industry.

And thus far, the wireless handset has resisted most attempts to turn it into something more than a phone. Aside from text messaging-a lower-tech function than wireless conversation-the only new application this capability is spawning is the downloading of ring tones.

The reason? Ring tones offer consumers a new way to express their individuality. Ring tones add fashion and flash to this very public accessory, much as neon-blue keypad backlighting and shiny trim do.

Don't underestimate the value of ring tones as a fashion statement. It's astounding: A generation accustomed to downloading a song for free will pay a dollar or more for a sliver of that same song, provided they can apply it as the call alert for a wireless handset. (Back in my day, it was just the opposite: We paid for our music, and ring tones were free.)

Wireless-service providers have figured this out and are marketing polyphonic ring-tone capability as part and parcel of the urban outfit. Sure beats the lame camera phone ads from a year ago. No one is snapping photos of a commode to employ as a visual aid when they need help finding a bathroom in a foreign country.

The success of ring tones suggests a model for proliferating all the technology that's forcing its way into handsets: Rather than bombard users with new capabilities, vendors would be more successful if they used the latest technology to craft sexier wireless phones.

One day, they will sneak the new applications into consumers' consciousness.

In the meantime, success in this business stems from style, not substance.

Mike Feibus is principal analyst at TechKnowledge Strategies Inc., a market research firm in Scottsdale, Ariz., that focuses on components for mobile systems. Reach him at mike@techknowledge-group.com.